Tatoosh Island

Tatoosh Island sits about 0.5 mile northwest of the Cape Flattery headland, the northwesternmost point of the contiguous United States. The site's south side is described as a canyon formed by 2 rock walls dropping to depths in the 80 to 95 foot range. The approach runs roughly 7 nautical miles from the Neah Bay Marina around Koitlah Point.

The island holds the Cape Flattery Lighthouse, which began operating on December 28, 1857 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. Tatoosh takes its name from Chief Tatooche of the Makah, and the Coast Guard has transferred the lighthouse to the Makah tribe while retaining access to maintain the optic. The island also carries among the top three seabird nesting colonies in Washington and has hosted long-running ecological research from Robert T. Paine beginning in 1967 and Julia Parrish continuing from 1990. Wolf eels, giant Pacific octopus, and Steller sea lions are reported at the site, along with multiple rockfish species.

The hard bottom and ledge structure of the shallower sections form a rocky reef biome, and kelp on the shallower shelves adds a kelp forest biome to the site. Scuba and spearfishing are the working activities. The advanced rating comes from exposed outer-coast swell, strong currents where the strait meets the Pacific, and fog that closes conditions frequently even in summer. Most divers work the site inside a June through September window.

Access is boat-only from the Neah Bay Marina. Landing on Tatoosh Island itself is prohibited without written Makah tribal permission; the island sits inside the Makah Indian Reservation, and Coast Guard access is limited to maintaining the lighthouse optic. The Makah Recreation Pass at $20 per vehicle for the calendar year is required for the dive. Tatoosh sits inside the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, which does not directly regulate fishing, and west of the Bonilla-Tatoosh boundary line, where Marine Area 4 rules are enforced by WDFW: the bottomfish season runs from the second Saturday in March through the third Saturday in October at a 9-fish daily aggregate that includes 7 rockfish (5-canary sublimit), 2 lingcod, and 1 cabezon. Copper, quillback, and vermilion rockfish are release-only in June and July, yelloweye rockfish are release-only year-round, and from June 1 through July 31, bottomfish retention is prohibited seaward of the 20-fathom (120 foot) depth line except on halibut-open days. Wolf eels and giant Pacific octopus are protected non-take statewide, and bang sticks are prohibited.